February 2017 issue

on sale now

FEATURES

Features• Hottest Hatches. Eighties pocket-rockets are hot property – we burn rubber in hard-charging hatches from VW, Peugeot, Ford, MG and Renault. Plus Quentin Willson’s pick• The List. Reader Rob Norton owned E-types and MGs in the Seventies, but the Sunbeam Tiger always eluded him. We realise his dream of driving Rootes’ hot rod• Bizzarrini. The short-lived 5300GT Strada was born out of a passion for racing and is a spectacular road car. We drive the Italian supermodel with a thumping American heart• The Pilgrimage. Russ Smith hits the highway in a Chevrolet Corvette C1 and finds the American midwest in deepest Kent, before visiting marque specialist, Claremont• Epic Restoration. Steve Webb’s dream of rescuing a Porsche 924 Carrera GT became a nightmare of melted wings and competing for missing parts with Derek Bell• Life Cycle. The Ford Escort MkI that Rosemary North won in a newspaper competition has been crashed, repaired and restored – but it’s staying in the family• The Collector. Luo Wenyou opens the doors to his musem to reveal a staggering collection of Chinese state cars, including Chairman Mao’s 10m-long limousine• Why I love… Brooklands Museum director Allan Winn on why he never tires of the Napier-Railton’s rear suspension

The month in cars• Classic Motor Show. Rarely seen Canadian export Vauxhalls revealed in Birmingham• Milano Autoclassica. Crowds flock to see Stradale-spec Lancia 037 and Delta S4 in Milan• Montée Historique. DB Monomil and Fiat 124 Abarth Rally storm challenging hillclimb• Events Planner. Olympia Historic Automobile Fair among five new events for 2017• Next month. Special Grand Designs issue sees four futurists go head to head• Your letters. Changing big ends in the gutter, and how best to get into a McLaren F1• Our Cars. Phil adjusts the E-type’s wheel camber, Ross’s Renault 5 Turbo suffers engine and bodywork problems and is Mike’s MG Midget about to go under the knife?